Many companies continue to maintain data in static data repositories, such as spreadsheets or other data repositories, which are often not configured to enable sharing and updating by many of the users. Instead, the repositories are updated periodically by a central source (e.g., management users, etc.) and then distributed to the users that rely on the data. This process results in a delay of information to the users, but is often justified as allegedly securing proprietary information while controlling access and modification to the repositories.
Many users access data using mobile devices, such as mobile telephones (or smartphones), laptop computers, and tablet computers. These tools enable access to data by users located in various different locations. However, these devices are not optimized to generate ad hoc reporting using static data repositories, such as spreadsheets. Sifting through large data sets using mobile devices can be time consuming and frustrating especially when the data is only visible in a table format.
In many instances, these existing data repositories can be leveraged to better communicate information to users in a convenient way without compromising security and control of modifications. For example, in the real estate industry, many different users, such as property owners, agents, vendors, and other interested parties, may desire to access similar information. In addition, the users may want to see different reports and/or perform different analytics using the same underlying data based on their own needs, desires, or goals.